Bele Chere plans to go out with real style

Published: Friday, July 26, 2013 at 7:24 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, July 26, 2013 at 7:24 a.m.

Bele Chere has long been one of the Southeast’s premier events, annually attracting large crowds to downtown Asheville since its inception in 1979.

This weekend’s 35th edition of the popular street festival, however, will most likely be the last.

With Asheville facing budget shortfalls, city leaders recently chose not to fund Bele Chere after this year. As disappointing as that news is likely to be for regular attendees, the final go-round is sure to be a blast.

“We’re going full steam ahead. We’re certainly not going out with a whimper,” said Sandra Travis, program supervisor of festivals for the city of Asheville.

“We’re producing this festival just like we have for years, and we’re going to offer the very best event that we can possibly produce with no shortcuts.”

Perhaps nothing draws people to Bele Chere more than music, and this year’s event is loaded with four stages of top-notch national and regional entertainers.

Today’s headliners include rockabilly legend Wanda Jackson and electronica artist Dan Deacon. Travis said that Jackson’s appearance has particularly generated a lot of buzz. Major music acts for Saturday include the funky Yo Mama’s Big Fat Booty Band and the jazzy Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, along with acoustic folk traditionalists David Holt & the Lightning Bolts and Nashville, Tenn.-based indie rock outfit Moon Taxi.

The festival closes out Sunday with music performances ranging from the blues-oriented Randall Bramblett Band to bluegrass favorites Balsam Range.

“We have pretty much any style of music you can think of,” Travis said. “We even have hip-hop with local duo Crazyhorse & Colston.”

Aside from music, festival- goers can check out a wide range of items being offered by arts and crafts vendors. And there will be plenty of culinary options with the Taste of Asheville in Pack Square and a second major food court at Pritchard Park.

The Lexington Avenue performance area, meanwhile, will offer interactive programming, in which attendees can participate in everything from dancing to hulahooping. It’s also where the Asheville Drum Circle will perform Friday and Saturday nights.

A children’s area can be found in the U.S. Cellular Center, highlighted by the Bob Moog Foundation’s Dr. Bob’s Interactive Sonic Experience.

“We’re really excited about having the Moog Foundation involved,” Travis said. “They’ll be putting on a great educational program for the kids that will be lots of fun.”

Children and adults are sure to be entertained by the Purina Ultimate Air Dogs, who leap in the air and splash in a pool throughout the festival.

Although downtown parking garages will be accessible, Travis suggests festival-goers make use of two shuttle buses running throughout the weekend.

Cost is $2 per round trip.

“Our east shuttle will leave from Asheville Mall on Tunnel Road and drop off at Pack Square,” Travis said. “And our west shuttle will run from the Kmart store on Patton Avenue and drop off at the U.S.

Cellular Center. … They’ll be running pretty much continuously, at least once every 20 minutes, so that’s really the way to go.”

<p>Bele Chere has long been one of the Southeast's premier events, annually attracting large crowds to downtown Asheville since its inception in 1979.</p><p>This weekend's 35th edition of the popular street festival, however, will most likely be the last.</p><p>With Asheville facing budget shortfalls, city leaders recently chose not to fund Bele Chere after this year. As disappointing as that news is likely to be for regular attendees, the final go-round is sure to be a blast.</p><p>“We're going full steam ahead. We're certainly not going out with a whimper,” said Sandra Travis, program supervisor of festivals for the city of Asheville.</p><p>“We're producing this festival just like we have for years, and we're going to offer the very best event that we can possibly produce with no shortcuts.”</p><p>Perhaps nothing draws people to Bele Chere more than music, and this year's event is loaded with four stages of top-notch national and regional entertainers.</p><p>Today's headliners include rockabilly legend Wanda Jackson and electronica artist Dan Deacon. Travis said that Jackson's appearance has particularly generated a lot of buzz. Major music acts for Saturday include the funky Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band and the jazzy Karl Denson's Tiny Universe, along with acoustic folk traditionalists David Holt & the Lightning Bolts and Nashville, Tenn.-based indie rock outfit Moon Taxi.</p><p>The festival closes out Sunday with music performances ranging from the blues-oriented Randall Bramblett Band to bluegrass favorites Balsam Range.</p><p>“We have pretty much any style of music you can think of,” Travis said. “We even have hip-hop with local duo Crazyhorse & Colston.”</p><p>Aside from music, festival- goers can check out a wide range of items being offered by arts and crafts vendors. And there will be plenty of culinary options with the Taste of Asheville in Pack Square and a second major food court at Pritchard Park.</p><p>The Lexington Avenue performance area, meanwhile, will offer interactive programming, in which attendees can participate in everything from dancing to hulahooping. It's also where the Asheville Drum Circle will perform Friday and Saturday nights.</p><p>A children's area can be found in the U.S. Cellular Center, highlighted by the Bob Moog Foundation's Dr. Bob's Interactive Sonic Experience.</p><p>“We're really excited about having the Moog Foundation involved,” Travis said. “They'll be putting on a great educational program for the kids that will be lots of fun.”</p><p>Children and adults are sure to be entertained by the Purina Ultimate Air Dogs, who leap in the air and splash in a pool throughout the festival.</p><p>Although downtown parking garages will be accessible, Travis suggests festival-goers make use of two shuttle buses running throughout the weekend.</p><p>Cost is $2 per round trip.</p><p>“Our east shuttle will leave from Asheville Mall on Tunnel Road and drop off at Pack Square,” Travis said. “And our west shuttle will run from the Kmart store on Patton Avenue and drop off at the U.S.</p><p>Cellular Center. … They'll be running pretty much continuously, at least once every 20 minutes, so that's really the way to go.”</p>